Are Cockroaches The New Antibiotics?
I would first like to apologize for the photo posted above. I know it’s vile, but this is some pretty intense stuff. Somehow there has been a recent discovery that cockroaches may be the key to new forms of antibiotics. Yes, roach medicine! Apparently the nasty little pests that we know to carry filth and disease also carry a molecule that can fight infections. According to AOL News:
British researchers at the University of Nottingham’s School of Veterinary Medicine and Science are behind the discovery, which entails harnessing molecules from the tissues of cockroaches and locusts to combat bacteria like E. coli and MRSA (drug-resistant staph infections).
The potent chemicals, found in the brain and central nervous tissues of the critters, are able to kill 90 percent of E. coli and MRSA in lab-based tests.
How does one even think to look for medicine in a roach? The researchers claim the “unsanitary and unhygienic environments” are what built up these powerful toxins and bug immunity to the aforementioned bacteria. This doesn’t mean you need to search for a roach to eat the next time you catch a cold—it’s just another odd discovery that’ll probably get tossed out the window in a few years. I’m still keeping the Raid on deck, just in case.
gross